Chocolate Covered Goodness

My work hosted a bake sale earlier this week, and I wanted to make something that no one else would think of (at least, I hoped no one would).  I was going to make chocolate covered marshmallows, but decided to make Oreo Pops because the cookies were on sale at the market, and because I wanted to see if I could make someone fall into a sugar coma.

Here is what you need to make your own Chocolate Covered Oreo Pops:

• Package of Oreos (I prefer Double Stuff Oreos)
• Popsicle sticks
• Melting chocolate
• Sprinkles

Carefully (CAREFULLY!!!!) twist the chocolate cookie wafers apart.  I can't stress the word carefully enough.  I had the toughest time getting the cookies to stay in one piece.  I got ticked off at the amount of wasted cookies I had, but my niece and nephew were overjoyed.  Put the cookie with the "middle" stuck to it on a wax-paper lined cookie sheet.

The pile of broken cookies that made my nephew's eyes go wide

Melt the chocolate according the package direction.  Make sure you do not overcook it, or you will be stuck with useless chocolate (it will burn).  Dip the top of the popsicle stick in the chocolate, and place in the middle of the cookie wafer.  Place the plain cookie wafer on top so you will now have a complete cookie.  Transfer the cookie sheet in the freezer for about 10 minutes, allowing the chocolate to set.

Check out my mad skills

Back to normal

This might sound too difficut to do.  Get ready......here goes...... Cover the cookie pop with the melted chocolate.  Whew!  Too much to handle, right?  I have found it easier to spoon the chocolate over the cookie instead of dipping it directly in the mixture.  Make sure you cover the entire cookie, and allow the excess chocolate to go back into the bowl.  Place the covered pop back on the wax paper.  Now is the time to sprinkle the sprinkles on your pop.  Allow the chocolate to set, and then you can wrap things up.

Getting a chocolate bath

Cute, right?  Super easy, right?  This would make great party favors, especially since melting chocolate comes in a variety of colors.  I used blue because I made these on Autism Awareness Day, and this was my attempt to Light It Up Blue.  This blue color would be perfect for a baby shower.

Finished product

How did the bake sale go, you ask?  Pretty good.  We have a variety of snacks, and collected $156.  How did my stuff go?  I made chocolate cake pops, which sold out.  I think a few Oreo pops were left over.  Truth be told, I think the blue chocolate frightened some people away.  However, I did ask a co-worker what she thought of them, and she said they were "effing good" (direct quote).

  

Rice Krispies + Peeps + Chocolate = YUM!

Wouldn't you know it?  The baking bug hit me today, and I didn't have enough ingredients on hand to make cupcakes.  I sent my hubby to the store to get some things.  I didn't want the creative juices to go away, so I thought I would share with you another recipe using Peeps.

This is a fun, and very messy, recipe to do with your little ones.  Be prepared for the mess.

Okay....let's begin.

The ingredients are pretty easy.  You will need two boxes of Rice Krispie treats, eight (8) bunny Peeps (or 16 chick Peeps), melting chocolate, and sprinkles.

Remove the treats from the packaging, and place them on a plate.  Using your hands, flatten each treat so they are about one inch high (to be honest with you, I'm not sure why I flattened them in the first place.  Once I did, I realized they were a lot easier to work with).

Now it's time to commit murder.  If you are using the bunny Peeps, you will have to slice each one down the middle so you end up with two bunnies.  Hey....they are known to multiple quickly, you know).

Please forgive me, Easter Gods

Melt the chocolate according to the directions on the package.  Now comes the assembly.  You can either dip the top of the krispie treat in the chocolate so that it is covered, or you can spoon and then smear the chocolate on the treat.  I found that the spoon way was easier (and cleaner).

 
Take one of the bunny halves, and place on top of the chocolate.  Put the treat on top of wax paper, and top with sprinkles (Sprinkles are really optional.  I love them, and will put them on anything possible).  The chocolate sets pretty quickly, so you can enjoy these in matter of minutes.

A chick sitting on his nest

A whole tray of these would look cute on any table, and would also make a festive party treat, especially for school classroom parties.  I used the products that I had on hand, but you could use different color chocolate and marshmallows.

The best thing about this recipe is you can adapt it for each holiday.  Peeps are available all year long, so you can make these at Halloween using pumpkin peeps and at Christmas using tree peeps. 

Try these with you little Peep fans, and let me know how they turned out.



A peep wearing her Easter bonnet (Meg's creation)



One Dirty Chick

Get your mind out of the gutter.

Here is the dirty chick I am talking about.

Dirty chick....get it?  I love Peeps, and I especially love them dipped in chocolate.  Sure, you can buy chocolate covered Peeps in the store, but I don't like those ones.  You know why?  The sugar coating is missing!  You are basically eating a chocolate covered marshmallow.  Peeps are not simply marshmallows!  The sugar coating is what makes it a Peep.

These would make cute party favors, especially for classroom parties (guess what the 2nd grade is going to have in April?).

Dirty Chicks are super easy to make.  All you need are Peeps, melting chocolate, and wax paper. 

We used blue chicks because, well, it reminded me of a blue duck, and I've never seen a blue duck before (Did anyone get that movie reference?).  Be sure to follow the directions when you melt the chocolate.  If you overheat it, it will not melt properly and you won't be able to use it.   Take a Peep, and dip the bottom of it in the chocolate.  Gently shake the chick to remove the excess chocolate, and then place the Peep on wax paper.  That's it!  That's all you have to do.  Keep dipping the Peeps until you run out of either supply.  Once you are done, you should have your own little chicken coop.

Not only do I love chocolate covered Peeps...I also love sprinkles (because I have the taste pallet of a child).  I thought the sprinkles added a little more color to this sugar treat.

What do you think?

My Own Lil Bit 'O Trouble

This past Saturday, my daughter and her Girl Scout troop sold cookies at the local mall.  Their booth was located in the food court, which was a primo spot.  It was also located across from the Nestle Toll House cookie stand.  Competing with them shouldn't be a problem -- who wouldn't want to buy cookies from sweet little girls?  I'll tell you who.  My daughter.

Her: "Can I get a cookie?"
Me: "What?  Are you kidding me?  You are selling cookies."
Her: "Come on!  They have the good cookies I like."

She's a great salesman, right?

And the cookies she likes?  It's call the Lil Bit 'O Trouble.  It's a small frosting sandwich -- two chocolate chip cookies with vanilla frosting in the middle, and rainbow sprinkles on the outside.  They also cost just about $3 a pop.  You would think that I have had enough of cookies already, considering I am the Girl Scout cookie mom.  You think wrong.  I decided to make my own version of this cookie, for much less than $3 a cookie.  I must admit to you now that I took the easy way and cheated.

You will need the following supplies: one can of vanilla frosting, a package of ready-to-bake cookies, and sprinkles.

I used the seasonal sugar cookies I found at the grocery store. I also made two packages, for a total of 48 cookies, which would make 24 cookie sandwiches.

Bake the cookies as directed and allow to cool completely.

I love these cookies.  My mom used to call them Magic Cookies because of the designs.  I was excited to find the Disney designs -- we are huge Disney buffs.

Place a glob (that's the technical term) of frosting on the bottom of the cookie, and place another cookie on top.  You should now have a cookie sandwich in your hand, and some of the frosting should be oozing out of the sandwich. 



Take your cookie sandwich and roll the outside of it in the sprinkles.

You now have your own version of the Lil Bit of Trouble.  Pretty crazy that someone charges $3 for these things, right?  I made 24 for less than $5.  The kids at the school's morning YMCA program were very happy to see me with these this morning.



And for those of you wondering....No.  I did not buy her a Nestle cookie when we are at the mall.  She got ice cream.

Come back tomorrow to learn how to make Dirty Chicks (not gonna give any secrets).